Signal-Copiahan. (Hazlehurst, Copiah County, Miss.) 1885-1888, 1887-11-24
MANY WAYS TO WE'D.
Queer Marriage Laws and Customs
of tho Old Days.
Roman Nuptials Cercmonies-rionser
weddings In This Country-Why
the Ring IL Worn on
Certain Finger.

Adam would probably never nave
married If he had been compelled to
hunt around the present Allegheny
County court buildings TO find the lit
tie back room of the registers Office.
where he would be obliged to pay his
half-lollar and swear to more things
than he ever dreamed of before he
could get a marriage license.
He would certainly have been in
bad fix when he came to swear that
Eve was of full age. or to produce the
written consent of her father or moth
cr l, is safe to say that ho would
have given it up and died an old bach
elor
Yet without minister. magistrate.
register or other official intervention
the marriage of Adam and Eve was
such that it would have stood the test
OF tho old BnSiish common law.
From earliest times the various
states of society have imposed rcgu-
lations for the observance of this sol.
cmn contract. For marriage is SIM
ply contract. except that the parties
con not now change or terminate it by
mutual consent, Is they can all other
contracts.
There is in the Royal Library of
Paris u written contract made in 1897.
between two persons of noble birth in
Armagnal. The husband and wife
were bound to each other for seven
wears. 1t was also agreed that the
parties should have the right to renew
the tic Mt the end of that time II they
mutually agreed; but If not, the chill.
dren were to b. equally divided. and
If the number should chance not to be
even. they were to draw lots for the
odd one.
The Roman church alone regarded
marriage rs sacrament, but all the
other churches recognized it as Di :
vine institution, and. accordingly,
every denomination has provided ro-
ligious services for its solcmnization.
So strong n hold did the church in En-
gland gain upon it that for n long time
the regulation of marriage and divorce
was almost exclusively under the
church's jurisdiction.
Among the Romans there were three
ways of obtaining wife, by capture.
sale or gift. When n Roman bought
n wife, and this was the usual way.
the ceremony that followed was mere
" gone through for the sake Of having
indisputable evidence of the sale.
The head of the family had 20 give
her over To the husband in the pres
ence of witnesses. and it is from this
that we now have the custom of Civ
inc away the bridc. Before the period
of Rpmc's greatness, the parties could
dissolve the marriage by mutual con-
sent.
Whom they wished to terminate the
contract. they usually went before an
altar and in the presence Of witnesses
declared the marriage ut an end. AT
and after the time of Rome's greatness
the marriage was indissolublc. The
II man husband took his wife not as
her husband. but rs her father. She
came into his family the same almost
Us an adopted daughter
Originally tho husband had absolute
and complete control over her and her
property. Even after his death she
was subjected to any guardianship
that he might have had appointed for
her during his lifetime. But n change
came in her condition, and came as
changes usually come. from Que cx-
tremo to another. The wife was now
subject to the tutelage of guardians
appointed by her own family. This